Tuesday, 14 June 2016

In Chinese cooking, especially with vegetarian cuisine, gluten is often used as a substitute for meat. Gluten and soy products have also long been the major ingredients for the Chinese Buddhist monks and nuns’ vegetarian meals in the monastery for over 2,000 years. Even those who do not follow a vegetarian diet can still enjoy eating dishes or snacks that were made with gluten.

I remember when I was little, whenever we went to a vegetarian restaurant or the canteen belonging to the temple with our parents, we would always have some really tasty dishes made with gluten cooked in so many delicious ways.

Cauliflower is a cruciferous vegetable. It belongs to the same family as broccoli, kale, cabbage and collards. They're a particularly nutritious vegetable family, providing vital vitamins, minerals, proteins and even carbohydrates.

Nowadays you don't have to wait for it to be in season to get your hands on it; it's available all year round. However, it's at its best from December through till March. I love using them in a stir-fry, or roasting them in the oven along with some broccoli, topped with cheddar cheese to make a lovely vegetable bake. But one of my all time favourite ways to use this versatile vegetable is in a soup.

Sunday, 17 April 2016

我們全家都愛吃豆腐。但最接近的唐人街離住處那麼遠，要經常買回來做菜並不容易。幸而每間大型超市一年四季都有那些紙盒包裝的絹豆腐。它們真的又軟又滑，吹彈得破！但別以為絹豆腐這麼幼嫩便很難處理，其實只要付出一點心思和時間，你可以把這些非常健康營養的好東西變化為極之美味的菜餚。一經嘗試之後，相信這道菜式將會成為你心愛的食譜，一款你會不時重覆為自己和家人泡製的拿手小菜。We love tofu, but living so far away from the nearest China town means we can’t always get it as often as we would like. Luckily local supermarkets do have those carton-packed silken tofu on the shelves all year round, they are really silky-smooth and delicate. If you handle it with care and cook it with love and attention, this super healthy and fantastically delicious dish will be something you love to cook for yourself and your family all the time.

Friday, 15 April 2016

Today I wanted to use up the left over artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes and roasted sweet red peppers from the Mediterranean salad box we had from yesterday, adding some Brie to make us some vegetarian panini for lunch. Because the filling would be quite chunky, I used a cast iron square griddle pan to grill the bread instead of our small domestic Panini sandwich maker.